Ron Paul (R) Representative, Texas 14th District

Paul Key Staff and Advisers

Inner Circle

Jesse Benton

Senior political adviser (National)

One of Paul's closest political adviser, Benton is also a member of the family, married to the congressman's granddaughter. He worked on Paul's 2008 presidential campaign, and was dispatched to take the reins of son Rand Paul's Kentucky Senate campaign when it needed a shakeup after the younger Paul made controversial comments about the Civil Right Act. Now seen as something of a family consigliere, he has been president of Paul's Liberty PAC, and a senior vice president of Campaign for Liberty, Paul's conservative advocacy group.

Mark Elam

President, M&M Graphics and Campaign Resources Inc. (Texas)

Elam was the national political director behind Ron Paul's unsuccessful presidential bid in 2008. He previously directed Paul's bid for Texas's 14th Congressional District, a seat Paul has held since 1996. Elam has also managed Paul's reelection campaign, and he's president of Texas-based Campaign Resources Inc. and M&M Graphics and Advertising, companies focused on political resource and direct mail.

Jeff Deist

Chief of staff, Office of Rep. Ron Paul (Washington, D.C.)

Deist has donned many hats during Ron Paul's political career, ranging from communications director and tax staffer, to his current position as chief of staff. Before joining Paul's staff in 2000, Deist worked as a tax attorney in California and was senior manager for several accounting firms. He left Paul's camp for several years but returned in 2010 to be chief of staff.

John Tate

President, Campaign for Liberty (Virginia)

Before he was at the helm of Paul's presidential campaign committee, Tate was a candidate. In 1996, Tate ran for Congress in Virginia's 2nd District, which includes Norfolk, but was defeated by Rep. Owen Pickett, a Democrat. He has been active in Virginia politics, serving as vice president of the Leadership Institute, a socially conservative training organization based in Arlington. Tate is president for Campaign for Liberty, a national conservative advocacy group founded by Ron Paul.

Gary Howard

Press secretary (National)

Howard has worked on Paul's 2008 presidential campaign, son Rand Paul's 2010 Kentucky Senate campaign, and as a communications director for Liberty PAC, the elder Paul's leadership PAC.

Iowa

Drew Ivers

Iowa chairman

A Republican activist for more than three decades, Ivers chaired Paul's 2008 presidential campaign in Iowa. He was Iowa chairman for Pat Robertson's 1988 campaign and for Pat Buchanan's 1996 and 2000 campaigns, and has often been a delegate to the Republican National Convention. He helped found the Christian Coalition in the state, a precursor to the influential Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition.

Steve Bierfeldt

Iowa executive director

A staffer on Rand Paul's Kentucky Senate campaign, Bierfeldt has also worked as vice president of development for Ron Paul's Campaign for Liberty. He has also directed winning straw poll efforts for Ron Paul at the Conservative Political Action Conference.

New Hampshire

Jim Forsythe

New Hampshire chairman

A longtime Paul supporter, Forsythe lost a congressional race in 2008 but won a state Senate seat in 2010. He was an aerospace industry entrepreneur and an Air Force pilot before going into politics.

Bob Goodman

Senior New Hampshire adviser

Goodman recently helped Republicans regain majorities in the state House and Senate. A partner with the consulting firm Whitefield & Burke, he has also worked on both the political and legislative staffs of former Rep. Bill Zeliff and former Sen. Bob Smith.

Jared Chicoine

New Hampshire state director

Chicoine has worked on New Hampshire political campaigns for more than a decade. He most recently ran state Senator Jeanie Forrester's successful campaign.

Jordan Brown

New Hampshire field director

Brown is reprising his role on Paul's 2008 presidential campaign. Since then, he has edited the website Freedom Revolution and a search engine optimization and web analytics consultant.